Berwick green to host Super Series pairs qualifier

Keith Hamblin

Berwick Bowling Club is set to play a key part in Scotland’s newest and highest ranking bowls competition giving club players in the area the opportunity to face world beaters.

The club will host qualifying rounds of the Scottish Super Series Pairs on August 22 and 23, from which local bowlers will progress to contest the finals at the Commonwealth Games venue, Kelvingrove. There they will face some of the players who competed in the Glasgow 2014 Games.

The Scottish Super Series is the result of 18 months of consultation by Bowls Scotland’s Competitions Review group which revealed club bowlers want to challenge Scotland’s top competitors.

The Scottish Super Series will be an open, knock-out competition for both male and female bowlers of any age or ability. They can enter either, or both, a Singles and Pairs tournament.

The competition will become Bowls Scotland’s sole Tier 1 event, carrying more ranking points than any other event in Scotland, together with a substantial prize fund of over £22,000.

Eight regional qualifiers take place on August 15 and 16 (Singles) and August 22 and 23 (Pairs) with the finals at Glasgow 2014 Games venue Kelvingrove on August 29 and 30 (Pairs) and September 5 and 6 (Singles).

The Scottish Super Series is being supported by Bowls Scotland’s High Performance Squad.

Paul Foster MBE, double gold medallist at Glasgow 2014, said: “It’s good that club members can now play in the Scottish Super Series and get the chance to play High Performance players. We will certainly be under pressure because people expect us to do well.”

The Scottish Super Series will also fill a much needed slot in the women’s calendar. “The Scottish Super Series will be really good for women’s bowling,” said Claire Johnston, of Team Scotland and a former world champion.